[8] The centre was established through a charitable trust; together with McLauchlan, founding trustees included Christine Cole Catley,[9] Witi Ihimaera and Geoff Chapple.

[12][13] In 2010 the centre began offering Māori writers' residencies, developed with the assistance of Witi Ihimaera.

[14] In July 2011 the centre offered a free week's residency for four writers affected by the Christchurch earthquake.

[11] In 2021 the centre announced a new exchange programme with Varuna, The Writers' House in the Blue Mountains, Sydney.

[16][17] From 2008 to 2019 the centre offered a programme of workshops for young writers, and since 2012 has published a literary journal of students' work titled Signals.